Crooked Creek Suspended Solids TMDL Allegheny River Armstrong and Indiana Counties Pennsylvania
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Crooked Creek Suspended Solids TMDL Allegheny River Armstrong and Indiana Counties Pennsylvania Prepared by: August 2015 Table of Contents Summary of the Crooked Creek TMDLs ............................................................................................... 1 I. Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 2 Watershed Description ..................................................................................................................2 Surface Water Quality ...................................................................................................................2 II. Approach to TMDL Development ............................................................................................... 8 Pollutants & Sources......................................................................................................................8 TMDL Endpoints ...........................................................................................................................8 Reference Watershed Approach ...................................................................................................8 Selection of the Reference Watershed ..........................................................................................8 III. Watershed Assessment and Modeling......................................................................................... 9 IV. TMDLs ......................................................................................................................................... 10 Background Pollutant Conditions ..............................................................................................10 Targeted TMDL ...........................................................................................................................11 Wasteload Allocation ...................................................................................................................11 1. TMDLs and NPDES Permitting Coordination ......................................................................... 13 2. Options for New and Expanding Permittees in TMDL Watersheds......................................... 14 Margin of Safety ...........................................................................................................................14 Waste Load Allocation ................................................................................................................14 Adjusted Load Allocation ...........................................................................................................15 TMDLs ..........................................................................................................................................16 V. Calculation of Suspended Solids Load Reductions .................................................................. 16 VI. Consideration of Critical Conditions ........................................................................................ 16 VII. Consideration of Seasonal Variations ....................................................................................... 17 VIII. Recommendations for Implementation .................................................................................... 17 IX. Public Participation .................................................................................................................... 19 X. Future TMDL Modifications ..................................................................................................... 19 Changes in TMDLs Requiring EPA Approval .........................................................................20 Changes in TMDLs Not Requiring EPA Approval ..................................................................20 Appendix A - AVGWLF Model Overview & GIS-Based Derivation of Input Data .............21 Appendix B - AVGWLF Model Outputs for the Crooked Creek Watershed........................23 Appendix C - AVGWLF Model Outputs for the Reference Watershed.................................24 Appendix D - Equal Marginal Percent Reduction Method .....................................................25 Appendix E - Equal Marginal Percent Reduction Calculations ..............................................26 Appendix F - Comment and Response Document ....................................................................29 List of Tables Table 2. Comparison Between Crooked Creek and Reference Watershed .........................................9 Table 3. Existing Loading Values for Crooked Creek (impaired) ......................................................10 Table 4. Existing Loading Values for Loyalhanna Creek (reference) ................................................10 Table 5. TMDL Total Load Computation .............................................................................................11 Table 6a. Mining Permits Crooked Creek .............................................................................................12 Table 6b. Non-Mining Permits Crooked Creek ....................................................................................12 Table 7. Load Allocation, Loads Not Reduced and Adjusted Load Allocations ................................15 Table 7. TMDL, WLA, MOS, LA, LNR and ALA for Crooked Creek ..............................................16 Table 8. Suspended solids Load Allocations & Reductions ................................................................16 List of Figures Figure 1 - Crooked Creek Watershed & Loyalhanna Creek Watershed (Reference) .......................7 Summary of the Crooked Creek TMDLs 1. These TMDLs were developed for Crooked Creek, SWP 17E, located in Armstrong and Indiana Counties, Pennsylvania. The watershed is 195.3 square miles. It is a tributary of the Allegheny River. Access to the watershed is available by traveling Route 422 west from Indiana. Protected stream uses in the watershed include aquatic life, water supply, and recreation. The lower section of the basin is currently designated as Warm Water Fishes (WWF) under §93.9t in Title 25 of the Pa. Code. Other portions of the watershed are designated as cold Water Fishes (CWF) and the headwaters, of South Branch Plum Creek is designated as a special protection High Quality (HQ) Watershed. 2. TMDLs for the Crooked Creek Watershed were developed to address use impairments caused by suspended solids. Crooked Creek first appeared on Pennsylvania’s 303(d) list in 1996, when the mainstem were listed as impaired by suspended solids emanating from upstream mining activities. Suspended solids TMDLs were developed to address suspended solids impairments identified in the Department’s current Integrated Water Quality Report. This suspended solids TMDL report supersedes and replaces the TMDLs established in the report, Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) Crooked Creek Watershed, dated March 5, 2009 and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 3 on April 8, 2009. In order to ensure attainment and maintenance of water quality standards in the Crooked Creek Watershed, mean annual loading of suspended solids will need to be limited to 75,880,797 lbs./yr. The major components of the Crooked Creek Watershed TMDLs are summarized below: Suspended solids Component (lbs./yr.) TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) 75,880,797 WLA (Wasteload Allocation) 12,278,280 MOS (Margin of Safety) 7,588,080 LA (Load Allocation) 56,014,437 3. The current mean annual suspended solids loading to Crooked Creek is estimated to be 109,963,026 lbs./yr., requiring a 31% reduction to meet the TMDL. 4. There are 13 mining related NPDES permits and 33 NPDES permits (storm water, public and private STPs, and industrial discharges) point sources of suspended solids located in the Crooked Creek Watershed; and were adjusted in the Waste Load Allocation (WLA). An additional allocation of 1% of the suspended solids TMDL (75,880,797 lbs./yr.) was incorporated as a bulk reserve (758,807.97 lbs./yr.) for the dynamic nature of future permit activity. 5. The suspended solids TMDL includes a nonpoint source load allocation (LA) of 56,014,437 lbs./yr. Adjusted Load Allocations to sources receiving reductions (ALA) total 51,191,977 lbs./yr. Suspended solids loadings from nonpoint sources not reduced (LNR) were maintained at 4,822,460 lbs./yr. Allocations of suspended solids to all nonpoint sources in the Crooked Creek Watershed are summarized below: Load Allocations for Sources of Suspended solids Current Loading Load Allocation Source (lbs./yr.) (lbs./yr.) % Reduction Coal_Mines 1,677,900 1,053,439 37% Transition 2,925,060 1,836,445 37% Cropland 25,742,800 16,162,146 37% Stream Bank 63,275,314 32,139,947 49% 1 Adjusted Loads Allocation to 93,621,074 51,191,977 45% NPS Reduced (ALA) NPS Loads Not Reduced (LNR) 4,822,460 4,822,460 0% Total Load Allocations (LA) 98,443,534 56,014,437 45% 6. Ten percent of the Crooked Creek suspended solids TMDLs were set-aside as a margin of safety (MOS). The MOS is that portion of the pollutant loading that is reserved to account for any uncertainty in the data and computational methodology used for the analysis. The MOS for the suspended solids TMDL was set at 7,588,080 lbs./yr. 7. The continuous simulation model used for developing the Crooked Creek TMDLs considers seasonal variation through a number of mechanisms. Daily time steps are used for weather data and water balance calculations. The model requires specification of the growing